NextGen Day

During their 10th Joint Economic Commission (JEC) meeting, the Philippines and France decided to expand their collaboration in seven important sectors.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said on Friday that the Philippines and France met face-to-face for the first time since the Covid-19 outbreak began three years ago at the 10th JEC meeting held in Paris on June 20.

The 9th JEC conference was virtually held in Manila and Paris in July 2021.

Alfredo Pascual, secretary of the DTI, and Olivier Becht, minister of foreign trade of France, had a conversation and committed to increasing bilateral collaboration in infrastructure and transportation, aviation, energy, agriculture, electronics, maritime industry, and shipbuilding.

Three letters of intent (LOI) were provided to the DTI by the French government: an LOI from the French Treasury and Matière on road bridges, an LOI from Aéroports de Paris on aviation, and an LOI from the French Treasury and Matière on dairy industry development in the Philippines.

Two Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) between Hydrogène de France, the National Power Corporation, and the Mindanao Development Authority were also signed before Pascual and Becht.

The MOUs are designed to make it easier for the nation to establish hydrogen power plants and renewable energy sources.

The Philippines expressed its desire to establish a working relationship with the French government’s national space agency, Centre National D’Etudes Spatiales, as well as its dedication to the MOU with the French government’s civil aviation regulator, Direction Générale de l’Aviation Civile.

The French shipbuilding company OCEA S.A.’s PHP1.5 billion shipyard development, as well as the Metro Manila Subway and North-South Commuter Railway projects, in which Colas, Rails, Alstom, Thales, and Egis are involved, were also discussed, according to the DTI.

The country’s projected urban cable car, railway signaling system, and bus rapid transit were all discussed.

Given that France is a world leader in electric vehicles and that French territory New Caledonia has large nickel resources, Pascual emphasized the possibility of cooperation between the Philippines and France in nickel processing.

One of the sectors highlighted in the DTI’s Make It Happen in the Philippines program is the processing of green metals, particularly nickel.

France is one of the few JECs we hold at the Ministerial level out of the 33 JECs the Philippines has. This fact underscores France’s significant contribution to our relationships with Europe. Indeed, we value the JEC as a tool for advancing our business ties, notably in trade and investment, the DTI director stated.

Pascual also pleaded with the French government to support the Philippines’ application to extend its Generalised Scheme of Preference Plus (EU GS+) membership and the resumption of talks on a Free Trade Agreement between the Philippines and the EU.

Philippines exports to France increased by almost 50%, to USD756 million in 2022, from USD514 million the year before. Last year, bilateral trade between the Philippines and France increased to USD1.8 billion from USD1.5 billion.

French investments in the Philippines were PHP6.7 billion between 2017 and 2022.

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